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Paris Fashion Week Coverage: Louis Vuitton Spring 2014 Collection

The gossip that has been lighting up Fashion Month involved a rumor that Marc Jacobs was leaving Louis Vuitton, and with yesterday’s grandiose showing the rumor was confirmed. Flashback episodes are annoying on TV, but when one of the world’s fashion superpowers flashes back to its finest moments, the event is nothing short of spectacular.

For Spring/Summer 2014, Jacobs transformed his set into a retrospective of past theatrics – the carousel (Spring/Summer 2012), the escalators (Spring/Summer 2013) and the fountain (Fall/Winter 2011) all looked on as a showgirl-themed collection unfolded on Marc Jacobs’ final presentation for Louis Vuitton.

It could be argued that this farewell collection was something of a swan song, but if it was, the swan was black and the song was somber. His radical set had been recast in black, the universal shade of mourning, but the clothes themselves were a fierce affair that competed with the notion that Jacobs was tugging at heart strings. Instead, Louis Vuitton’s Spring/Summer 2014 collection is where the divine meets denim in a clash of luxe and street.

Strong, sensual clothing paid homage to the powerful visionaries (Kate Moss, Coco Chanel, Miuccia Prada, and more) who helped shaped Jacobs as a designer. Each model wore an extravagant, towering headpiece crafted by Stephen Jones, with Edie Campbell setting an irreverent mood at the outset by appearing in almost nothing but the headpiece (save for the Louis Vuitton logo graffitied on her nude form). For next season, Jacobs showed tough pieces like boyfriend jeans and leather motorcycle jackets embellished with cascading leaves along the shoulders, but he softened the “street” aspect of the collection with lots of mesh and exquisite beading. On the softer side there were simple silk mini dresses carved with cutouts, mesh tank dresses embellished with dark crystal beading, and shrunken blazers embellished with oversized jet-black flower appliqués. Stunning formalwear featured gowns that were as ornate as they were wicked, with feathers feathers everywhere.

Every changing of the guard ushers in a new era at a fashion house. Though we bid adieu to the man who made Louis Vuitton the superpower it is today, we also look forward to a future ripe with possibilities.